Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I bought a leopard gecko last week, I put a 50 watt red bulb in the tank, but the bottom of the tank stays pretty cool. The under tank heat pads are so expensive, 20 bucks where I shop, I heard you can buy some other type at WalMart for around 5 bucks, anyone know if that is true?

Using people heating pads such as the ones at Wal-Mart are extremely dangerous as they are a huge fire hazard using them under a tank, Trust me I know and learned the hard way. Luckily I checked it when I did and averted a disaster. Heat pads are about the same price where I shop as well and the way I see it, if you can afford a 40-50-60 $ Gecko you should be able to pick up a $20 heat pad for it. Try shopping online maybe you can find good prices. Check eBay to for used heat pads but please, for your sake as well as the Geckos don’t use human heat pads
My Research and Collection

Below is a link to ebay using the search "Reptile heat pads" Good luck
Reptile Heat Pads on eBay

ya dont use the human heat pads. also spend the 20 bucks and save your gecko, because it probably isnt doing to well anyhow without it. plus leos are nocturnal and dont bask in the sun.

I prefer heat tape for all my reptiles (other than turtle). Heat tape is not all that expensive, as compared to some of the heat mats. And the wattage is much lower than a light bulb, so the power bill is not affected has harshly. Ilike the 12" wide heat tape, you can make a 12" X 12" heat area for under $8.

Matt

Interesting, I dont mean to steel the thread but where do you purchase heat tape?
My Research and Collection

Speaking of u.t.h.'s...

I have been monitoring the temperature of the substrate over my u.t.h. (which seems to vary from spot to spot) and I have noticed that, in some places along the bed of my terrarium, my u.t.h. runs up between 95 and 97 degrees F. I bought a dimmer today at Lowe's, but I am afraid I will do some type of damage if I actually use it. It is a dimmer intended for use on lamps. Is this they type of dimmer you all use (if you use one)? Also, should I dim the heat a bit? I ahve read that 96 is about as hot as you want to get it. Some areas of substrate (which happens to be reptile carpet--I think I am going to make a switch to paper towels) run what seems to be kind of low, around 86 to 88 degrees. What should I do? Should I dim the temp at night? Should I dim it a bit during the day? The other side of the tank is kept anywhere from 70 to 78 during the day.

Help!

I have purchased all my heat tape and the connectors at the National Breeder Expo in Daytona. I never bought enough to make a mail order worthwhile, so I pick it up there each year. I buy my temp control dimmers through That Fish Place/That Pet Place. I can control a few cages with one since the wattage is so low.

Here is a link to similar tape, just the first one on the list when using a search engine